In the south of Hongdong County, there is a tavern next to Gaotao Temple, which sells soup cakes and drinks to passers-by. Luo Cang and four men gathered around a table. There were several cooking cakes, a large plate of meat, and a pot of wine on the table. They ate and drank.
Suddenly, several men came in from outside the village, holding ropes in their hands. When they saw young and middle-aged men, they tied them up and held them behind them.
Hearing the noise, Luo Cang looked up and asked the store owner: "Master, what are those gentlemen doing? Why are they kidnapping people on the street?"
The host said: "My guest doesn't know, the army from Taiyuan Prefecture has arrived at Lingshi, where they are arresting Li Songchen. In a few days, they will come to Jinzhou. The army wants people to transport grain and grass and do chores. These men are captured It is difficult for the army to do its job."
Luo Cang looked at the shop owner and the few servants in the shop, and said with a smile, "Why aren't you afraid, Master?"
The shop owner said: "I am familiar with the inspections here. They will not come to my shop to pick up people. If not, how will the business be done? The few guests will have nothing to do with me. We will settle the account after these officials leave. .”
Luo Cang said: "These birds are so brave that they dare to come and take advantage of Sa's house!"
After saying that, he picked up the bowl and said: "It's unlucky today to encounter something like this! Come, let's drink!"
Several people drank and watched the businessmen pick up people outside the store. In a short time, the whole village was in a state of panic, and those who escaped were scattered in all directions.
The man walked around the village and only caught five or six people, holding them with a rope. When I walked outside the store, I saw the five Luo Cang people drinking inside. The leader praised: "These five big men must be able to work!"
After saying that, he hesitated and walked to the store.
The shop owner was shocked. He hurriedly stepped forward and said: "Observation, all my customers here are from out of town, but there are no locals. Inspection Zhao said, don't take people from my shop. Please be careful with observation and don't disturb my business." "
The gentleman looked at Luo Cang and the other five and said, "Why aren't they from the local area? Those men look familiar to me. I think they are from nearby villages and hid in your shop to avoid us. You don't need to say more, let me Those five people come with me!"
The shop owner said: "Observe carefully. These five people are here for the first time today. How do you know them?"
The gentleman said: "Am I still wrong? Please step aside and don't stop us from doing things!"
After saying that, he took out his belt knife and waved it in front of the shop owner.
Seeing the knife coming out, the shop owner didn't dare to stop him anymore and had to step aside. He said: "Observation, it is common to be dazzled for a moment and make mistakes. These guests really just arrived here today. How could they be from neighboring villages? I don't know anyone in the nearby villages?" "
The gentleman ignored the shop owner. He stepped forward with his sword pointed at Luo Cang and said: "You guys must have come here to hide from us from nearby villages! How can you escape my discerning eyes? Get up quickly and follow us to the Yamen as errands!"
Luo Cang took a piece of meat and ate it. He looked at the gentleman sideways and said, "Sister-in-law, my grandpa didn't even finish a meal of wine and meat when he came here. You know how to look at it! What's the use of having eyes like this!" "
The gentleman said: "Oh, these birds still dare to curse? Come on, tie them up!"
Luo Cang laughed, stood up suddenly, and came to the gentleman in two steps. Stretching out his hand, he grabbed the man's neck with his left hand and caught it like a chicken. A pair of chopsticks in his right hand thrust into the man's eyes. He said in his mouth: "You are blind, so just be useless!"
After saying that, he took the gentleman's waist knife with his right hand and pushed him to the ground with his left hand.
Holding the steel knife straight, Luo Cang said: "My grandfather has never known farming since he was born. He only knows how to kill people! You guys are here to tease me! Today I took the lives of a few of you to get a life for the people." justice!"
As soon as he finished speaking, a man drinking next to him suddenly got angry. He rushed to a man, hugged him with his hands, and threw him to the ground. He raised his right foot, stepped on the man's neck, and took his life. He pulled out his sword and went straight to kill the men next to him.
Before the gentleman could react, within a few breaths, Luo Cang and this man took his life.
Throwing the knife on the ground, Luo Cang laughed and said: "Sure enough, they are the Three Tigers of Yueyang. They are really famous for their stupidity! Brother, these few times, the rabbit has risen and the falcon has fallen, it is really not a waste of fame!"
After saying that, he walked to the table, picked up the wine bottle, took a big sip, and ate another piece of meat. He said: "We can't stay here any longer after we do this. Master, cut us five kilograms of meat and fill it with three gourds of wine to drink on the road!"
After saying that, I threw a piece of silver on the table and said, "This is wine money!"
When he saw the silver, the shop owner's eyes lit up. He was frightened by the ferocity of Luo Cang and others just now, and hurriedly ordered the servants to cut meat and make wine.
The meat was wrapped in two lotus leaves, and a few people strode out of the village carrying the wine gourd. A few common people who were tied up by the public servant dared to untie the rope and ran away without a trace. The owner of the store hurriedly sent someone to notify the inspection and come to check.
On the way, Luo Cang said: "This is the most prosperous place in the world, but now it is sparsely populated. The gold thieves have done so many evil things! These patrols and the like are working for the tiger, and they are not good people! The front will definitely take us on the road, It’s better to walk back eastward!”
Several people said so and followed Luo Cang eastward, leaving Fenhe River and heading south along the path.
In the evening, a few people saw an unattended melon shed on the side of the road, so they walked over and spent the night.
After laying out the wine and meat on the ground, Luo Cang said: "Let's use some wine and meat, eat and sleep. Get up early tomorrow and use Xiaoxing to travel!"
After taking a few sips of wine, Luo Cang said: "Brother Lu Hui, who you are familiar with, left the village for something. Unfortunately, you couldn't wait, so the village owner had no choice but to send me to pick you up the mountain. You have been walking in a hurry these days. I haven’t asked you what you committed?”
The man who killed the man in front said: "We have an ancestral vegetable field in Yueyang City, and the three brothers make a living by growing vegetables. After the gold thieves came, a local Cai Yuanwai became the county magistrate, and there was no law. Because we His vegetable plot was adjacent to his house and was taken away by force. The three of us had no food to eat. One afternoon, the three of us were drinking. Thinking of this incident, we couldn't hold back our anger. In anger, the three of us rushed in At Yuan Cai's house, his whole family was killed. No one cared about it, and he happily served as county magistrate for a few days. The Jin soldiers from Taiyuan Prefecture came south, and they heard that they were going to Yueyang to encircle and suppress us, so they had no choice but to surrender to the village."
Luo Cang said: "No wonder you live in the county government office when I go to Yueyang. Being a county magistrate for a few days in this life is considered an official."
In fact, Luo Cang knew that things would not be so simple. Just because the three brothers said so, he believed it. Everyone lives on a knife's edge. There is no tomorrow after today, so why worry too much?
There are three brothers, the eldest is called Luo Fu, the second is called Luo Lu, and the third is called Luo Shou. Although their names are festive, their people are vicious and they are called the Five Tigers of Yueyang. We are familiar with the road to Baotei Village. After doing some work in Yueyang, he wrote a letter to the mountain saying that he wanted to defect. Because Lu Hui went to Taiping County for business, Luan Qingshan sent Luo Cang to pick up the three people up the mountain.
As soon as Baowei Village was established, Luan Qingshan robbed He Yuanwai's family outside Jinzhou City, and he immediately became famous. In the nearby prefectures and counties, those who were accustomed to being bandits or had acquaintances in the mountains, all defected to him. Within a few months, there were six to seven hundred minions, becoming a major force.
Unlike ordinary rebels, the heroes of Baowei Village did not resist Jin. They only robbed houses, drank from large bowls on the mountain, and ate large pieces of meat. On the contrary, they were not regarded as a threat by the government. Even a month ago, the Jinzhou government sent people to recruit Luan Qingshan. He said that as long as he followed the banner of the Jin Army, he would be an official. Luan Qingshan was unwilling, so he treated the envoy well and sent him down the mountain. The magistrate of Jinzhou felt it was a pity.
Baowei Village is separated from Shenshan County by a mountain, but they have two completely different styles. Shenshan County is a regular army with strict military discipline and clear political goals. It will never harm ordinary people. Except for the food and clothing sent from the rear, they all rely on the labor of their own hands. Leopard tail village is different, the discipline is rough, or there is no discipline. The sources of personnel are diverse, and there are all kinds of people. The minions can also farm, but the leaders are lazy. Every day there is a constant flow of wine and meat in the cottage, and there is also a casino, which makes it as chaotic as possible. Someone is short of money, so they grab a few people and go out to rob them.
In the eyes of the government, everyone in Shenshan County is a traitor and no one is a good person. Although the people in Baowei Village have done all kinds of bad things, they are all good people without going against the Jin Dynasty. It's a pity that their leader's vision is limited and he doesn't know how to join the government and become an official. Little did he know that these two places belonged to Wang Xiaolie.
(End of chapter)
